Signup started for Summer Translation program

March 13, 2009

KALAMAZOO--Western Michigan University is offering a four-week summer program for those learning Arabic, Chinese, French or Japanese who want to improve their translation skills while working on their language proficiency.

Organized by WMU's Department of Foreign Languages, the program will run during the first four weeks of Summer II session, June 25 to July 24. It is open to students from WMU or other colleges or universities, high school teachers, professionals or government officials who rely on translation or foreign languages as part of their careers or native speakers who want experience translating to English.

Review of applications for the Summer Translation Institute will begin on Sunday, March 15, and continue until positions are filled. For more information, visit wmich.edu/languages/summertranslation.

The program combines theory, business and practice and already has attracted interest from potential students as far away as Arizona and Saudi Arabia, according to Dr. Jeffrey Angles, director of WMU's Japanese language program and assistant professor of Japanese literature and language.

"Translation is a critically important skill for the current global economy but relatively few people, even in established language programs, stop to think about how to develop that skill," says Angles. "Most modern language programs typically train students to function fluently within the target language. That makes a lot of sense since they are trying to get students to function as best they can within a culture, but translation--the moving back and forth between two languages and cultures--is a skill not typically developed in the classroom. Our Summer Translation Institute helps students understand the process of trans-lingual, intercultural communication, helps them develop this skill, and shows them how to use it in their careers."